Fiestas – EASTER (Semana Santa) in Benidorm

Fiestas – EASTER (Semana Santa) in Benidorm

This highly religious festival is recognised and commemorated in every city, town and mountain village throughout Spain, and is as important as Christmas is.

The varias cofradias and hermandads, (brotherhoods) will have been preparing and practicing for months for their displays of piety and devotion to God in Semana Santa, Holy Week.

The religious statues from the churches are brought out on floats and carried aloft by teams of ‘penitentes’ as they are paraded around the local streets to the sound of solemn marching music – the participants copy the gait of the shackled Christ.

During the processions you will see people wearing (penitents) pointed hoods, which to us look like a variation of the Klu Klux Klan, these outfits date well before the days of the KKK decided to wear them and date back to 1521. These outfits are worn as a penance for their sins, some will be walking barefoot and even chained. There are generally 2 floats one with the statue of the virgin Mary and the other with Jesus on the cross. It is seen as a real honour to be asked to help carry these very heavy and large floats. There will also be lots of brass bands.

The processions begin on Palm Sunday the week before Easter, followed by those on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

THE PARADES

April 14: Palm Sunday

11.00 hours: Procession of the Palms

(Parish of San Jaime and Santa Ana)

11.00 hours: Procession of the Palms

(Parish Ntra. Sra de la Almudena)

12.00 hours: Procession of the Palms

(Parish the Good Shepherd)

12.00 hours: Procession of the Palms

(Parish of San Juan Bautista)

20.00 hours: Procession of the Royal Brotherhood Ntra. Mrs. Of the hope and La Paz and Ntro. Father Jesus of Health and Humility

(Parish the Good Shepherd)

April 17: Holy Wednesday

22.00 hours: Procession of the Brotherhood Ntro. Father Jesus Nazareno

(Parish the Good Shepherd)

April 18: Holy Thursday

9:00 pm: Procession of the Sacramental Brotherhood of the Holy Supper and the Brotherhood of Crsito del Perdón y la Buena Muerte.

(Parish Our Lady of the Almudena)

9.00 pm: Procession of the Brotherhood of the Prayer of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane

(Parish of San Juan Bautista)

April 19: Good Friday

8.30 pm: General Procession of the Holy Burial

(Parish of San Jaime and Santa Ana)

April 21: Resurrection Sunday

08.00 hours: Procession of the Meeting and the Embassy

(Parish of San Jaime and Santa Ana)

If you’re in Benidorm, try to see at least one, you won’t regret it. There’s a slight possibility that these times may change a little due to unforeseen circumstances!

EASTER EGGS

Chocolate eggs are not associated with Easter in Spain although you will see some available in the supermarkets.

The Spanish celebrate with a round sweet bread called Mona de pascua, this is sprinkled with sugar and topped with a hard boiled egg. These are eaten on Easter Monday and are a sign of the end of lent, when the whole family will go out for a picnic in the country.

Some families now prefer the more modern method of preparing this cake which involves chocolate and a lot of vibrant colors and cakes this version would be topped with nuts, candied fruits, or chocolate, with chocolate eggs (instead of the hard boiled) with colorful feathers and figurines of baby chicks!

Recipe for Mona de Pascua (Traditional)

Ingredients:

1/2 kg – Flour

75 g – Sugar

50 g – Butter

3 – Eggs

10 gr. – Salt

1 – Lemon rind, grated

50 g. – Yeast

Milk

For decoration:

Hard boiled eggs

Oil

Egg, beaten

Preparation:

Knead the flour with the sugar, eggs, salt, yeast, butter and lemon rind.

Add the milk slowly until you have a homogeneous mass that pulls away from your hands.

Let stand for 30 minutes.

Shape it into a mountain, making a depression in the top, spreading it out until it forms a crown.